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The festivity of the holiday season can be overshadowed by too many attendant chores — buying presents, organizing holiday décor, baking treats and stocking up on your family’s favourite food and drink.

To get a leg up on a lengthy to-do list, you may want to visit the Seasons Christmas Show (seasonsshow.com), sponsored by the Toronto Star, and which runs Nov. 22-24 at the International Centre, in Mississauga.

Full disclosure: I’ve put together a list of fabulous show finds for my seminars there at 5 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday.

A few noteworthy entries from among the approximately 200 exhibitors with offering everything from pet products to gourmet food, as well as talented local artisans and designers who create beautiful décor, fashion, jewelry and toys:

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Ring Imports is a small, family-run business that sells exquisite handcrafted Nutcrackers, music boxes, tree ornaments and candle-driven pyramids that come from Seiffen, Germany, an area well-known for its hand-carved Christmas decorations.

Rosa’s Butterfly is another family business with a great back story. It’s run by Burona and SunYoung (Rosa) Shim. A lovely young couple from South Korea, they met in college where they were both majoring in comic book art. The company they now run together sells their own line, which includes wall clocks, mirrors with beautiful scroll-work frames and (faux) gold-leaf standing lamps made with rice paper, also overlaid with scroll work and ornamented with luminous shell accents. The workmanship and joinery on both is very fine. They also make lovely, highly affordable wooden tree ornaments, and Rosa does custom mural work.

Dale Ballard of Downtown Moose will be selling glasses, mugs, carafes, hurricane lamps and lanterns etched with nature-themed designs, and a signature “D” etched inside a maple leaf on the bottom of each piece. All are dishwasher safe.

Upcycled Spirits makes a variety of glass and barware — as well as some nifty jewelry pieces — from used wine and liquor bottles.

Kate’s Garden is a small shop that sits unassumingly on a little street in Unionville. It may be one of the area’s best-kept secrets. In addition to landscaping and in-home and special-occasion floral services, owner Kate Seaver has wonderful seasonal décor, including fabulous faux greenery, glassware, candles and tree ornaments. To me, the selection matches anything that higher-end retailers offer — and it doesn’t come with the ridiculous prices seen in the tonier establishments.

Seaver, who refers to herself as a “Christmas junkie,” will also conduct décor how-to seminars on the Toronto Star Celebrity Stage. Other speakers include Jane Lockhart, who will share ideas for simple seasonal touches, and clever ways to update last year’s décor. Jackie Glass will set a winter-white table inspired by nature, while Frankie Flowers will deliver tips on creating festive urns.

Food is, of course, a huge part of holiday fun, so there will be lots of purveyors of gourmet treats. FoodiePages is a virtual farmer’s market that connects consumers with Canadian food producers, farmers and artisans. They’ll offer, among other things, holiday-themed food boxes. A tree-trimming box includes, for example, specialty teas and mulled apple cider, Ontario popping corn, oat scones, salted caramel, handmade marshmallows and lavender shortbread.

If you need help with serving suggestions and recipe ideas, Annabelle Waugh, Canadian Living food director, will demonstrate holiday desserts from the magazine’s test kitchen. Representatives from the Dairy Farmers of Canada will discuss how to store and serve cheese, and what to pair various types with.

Fashion isn’t a category that fits into home décor, but there will be lots on display at the show. If you go, make sure to check out a range of hoodies from Sasha Designs. Made by young designer Dominique Baldassi, they’re beautifully cut from high-quality material and feature lovely little touches — such as lace insets and fur trim.

Tickets are $15 for adults ($13 online); seniors and youths $12; kids under 12 are free. Tickets for a Celebrity Champagne Brunch, which includes breakfast, door prizes, an exhibitor gift card, a bracelet custom-designed by an exhibitor, go for $50. Net proceeds also go to the Peel Children’s Aid Foundation.

More from Vicky Sanderson at thestar.blogs/com/onthehouse. Also the DIY editor for Reno and Decor magazine, Vicky is on Twitter: @vickysanderson or email vswriter@sympatico.ca .

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